Youth Ministry needs Relevancy, not Entertainment

Youth ministry is fascinating to me because youth culture is always changing. As youth culture continues to change, so do the ministry methods youth workers use to reach the next generation with the Gospel.

Many youth ministers have experienced how tricky it can be to preach the Gospel in a traditional straightforward way to teenagers. Sometimes conviction will flow through the students, but other times there is a disconnect. The student can be too detached from the Bible’s ancient context. As a result, a student may feel the message is boring or irrelevant.

Youth ministers can also be oblivious to how confusing their preaching may be. Assumptions can be made that students will know what you mean when you say, “atonement”, “Israel”, “Christ”, or “sin”. We want to be faithful to Scripture, but we also need the next generation to actually comprehend Scripture’s message to be transformed by it.

And so, with a well-intentioned desire for the next generation to hear and believe the Gospel, many youth ministries over the years have turned to entertainment as a primary tool for evangelism and discipleship. On the surface, this ministry method has brought a lot of success, with students who would never step foot in church going to youth group. The kids are having fun and they enjoy their time there.

But from day one, this method of outreach has had controversy and debate. How fruitful is it in the long run? How far is too far? Is this how Jesus and the Apostles reached their generation?

Entertainment and Relationship Building
Before going any further, let me explain what I mean when I say entertainment. I work in youth ministry full time, and I host events that are focused on having fun. A recent event was an annual Nerf War and pizza night we have every January for the students (you would not believe the amount of Nerf darts that remain scattered throughout the office even after clean up).

When I lead my weekly club with the students, I give them time to have a snack, goof around, and play games before going into the lesson. So I want to be clear: I think it is good to give teenagers a space to have fun.

What we need to be asking when planning fun activities is what the purpose behind these activities is, and what the ultimate draw is for the students.

For example, while we play games at the weekly club, I place limits to what they can and cannot play. I intentionally don’t offer video games at club. They can only be played by a certain amount of students, and in my experience they distract more than help. On top of that, most of my students struggle to stay away from their phones for more than a few minutes, and encouraging them to spend their limited time at club playing on a TV can be unintentionally enabling screen addiction.

At the same time, that is not to dismiss the benefits of video games altogether. Outside of the weekly gatherings, I try to spend time with students in small groups or one on one, and in that setting, video games can actually be a great tool to build relationships between the youth worker and the student. Sitting together for an extended period of time playing a mindless video game can open the opportunity for conversation, whereas a club or youth group environment can be a little too crowded.

So in the case of video games, I think it has potential to be a useful resource to break the ice with a student and have discussion. But again, for me this is only on occasions, and not the norm. The norm that I hope the weekly club can bring is more relational and offscreen.

Staying on the subject of games, some youth groups over the last couple decades have been notorious for creating games so outrageous and disgusting that it would make Steve-O blush. It seems youth workers thought making games crazier would make it more memorable for the youth and entice them to show up.

But some of these have gone way too far. While we want the students to enjoy their time at our gatherings and make memories, parents are trusting us to protect their children. Plus, the truth is, these kinds of games only appeal to certain students, and depending on the craziness of it, can unintentionally marginalize other students who don’t find enjoyment in that setting.

I’m not perfect at planning games/activities, but some convictions I’ve had over the years is that I don’t want my students to play games that:
a. Embarrass them
b. Are too athletic that only certain students can play them well
c. Are so disgusting that someone might gag just watching it

I think what we need to ask when planning our games, activities, and messages, is what the draw is for these students. What will appeal for the next generation to come and hear the Gospel? The specific ministry I work in focuses primarily on non-Christian students. Some come and are interested in hearing about Jesus, but many aren’t. So what draws them?

As tempting as it is, our answer should ultimately not be because it’s entertaining. I suggest instead that the draw should be the culture we bring. It’s a culture that, yes, has fun, but there is a purpose to that fun. The fun isn’t to draw them in so they can hear the Gospel. The purpose of the fun is to build community, a community where they belong. The draw for skeptics should be a feeling that they are valued. And it is through that community that trust is formed, and real dialogue to share the Gospel can begin.

If a youth worker relies too much on entertainment, they run the risk of rooting their relationship with the students in the entertainment. Such roots won’t last. Intentionally presenting the games/fun/entertainment within a larger context of building community can bring cultural hospitality to the student. I would argue this brings deeper roots to the youth worker’s relationship with the student.

Relevancy over Entertainment
When I say youth ministry needs to be more relevant, I don’t mean that youth ministry needs to incorporate pop culture. What I mean is that youth workers need to better understand what appeals to their specific demographic.

This doesn’t mean we downplay certain parts of the Gospel. When teaching and making disciples we should share the full story of Jesus Christ. However, we can discern what parts of the Gospel may convict our audience and lean into that when witnessing. The book of Acts shows a diversity of ways to share the Gospel with different cultures, leaning into different truths of Jesus that better resonates with the audience. With discernment, we can and should do the same with youth.

Conclusion
As addicted as many teenagers are to their phones, consider this: if a teenager had an urgent doctor’s appointment, where they may be told serious news about their health, they’re going to be invested. The doctor doesn’t need to entertain them because the teenager knows this information is important for them.

As youth workers, we know the Gospel is important for youth, but that doesn’t mean we do a good job showing that. I do believe there is a time and place to have fun, play wacky games (within reason), and host movie nights with the youth. But in my opinion, those of us in youth ministry should think more critically about what our games/fun activities are. Instead of relying heavily on entertainment to preach the Gospel, I suggest we model the Gospel through hospitality, community, and (very) patient love.